A new Planet of the Apes film will be directed by Matt Shakman, known for his work on The Fantastic Four: First Steps.

      The planet will continue to be under the control of apes, as 20th Century Studios has selected Matt Shakman, director of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, to lead a new Planet of the Apes film. Shakman is collaborating with his Fantastic Four writer, Josh Friedman, on what is expected to be an original story that, according to Deadline, will not follow the events of 2024's Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. The recent film was itself a far sequel to the rebooted origin trilogy, which chronicled Caesar and the apes’ emergence as the dominant species on Earth. Kingdom, which was also written by Friedman, is set centuries after War for the Planet of the Apes and introduces a new group of apes interacting with humans for the first time, as well as a more militant ape society.

      Shakman and Friedman are working on the film with Apes producers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, who collaborated with Friedman on the story. There has been no announcement regarding a possible release date or full confirmation that the new film will not continue from Kingdom’s storyline, so we will have to wait for updates on both fronts. Shakman directed Marvel’s inaugural Disney+ series, WandaVision, which remains one of the MCU’s most highly regarded productions. Last year, he returned to the MCU by rebooting Marvel’s first family in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and the Fantastic Four are expected to appear again later this year in the highly anticipated Avengers: Doomsday. Additionally, Friedman contributed to James Cameron’s Avatar sequels, The Way of Water and Fire and Ash.